28 September 2022

One donor can potentially help save 9 lives

A spotlight on organ donation, and those that work within the system. 

If you are aged 18 and over and not in an excluded group, then you are a potential donor.  

How does organ donation work?  

If the unthinkable happens, such as an accident or a sudden illness our healthcare professionals will do all they can to save your life. Only if death is inevitable - despite all healthcare professionals’ best efforts - will organ and tissue donation be considered as part of end-of-life discussions with your loved ones.  

The NHS Organ Donor Register is only opened once end-of-life care planning has started. The Register can only be accessed by a specialist nurse for organ donation, and only then will they discuss the possibility of organ donation with your family. 

Opting in to the donor register can help save lives – register your decision - NHS Organ Donation 

Letting your family know your thoughts regarding donation is the only way your wishes can be upheld by them at a distressing and emotional time. To find out more visit the NHS Organ Donation website 

Facts 

In the last 12 months, 37 patients received a lifesaving or life-changing transplant from 11 donors who died within our Trust. We had 15 patients whose relatives consented to organ donation, four were unable to proceed due to medical contraindications. Since 2015 the Trust has provided 84 donors who have gone on to save the lives of 211 people. 

Mouse Cooke-Priest has been a specialist nurse for organ donation for nearly four years. Although primarily based at Frimley Park Hospital, she has an on-call rota that covers every hospital with an intensive care unit (ICU) across the whole of Surrey, Sussex and Kent. 

Can you explain what a specialist nurse for organ donation does? 

As a Specialist Nurse, we provide a supportive service to the families of end-of-life patients in our Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and guide them through the process of organ and tissue donation. 

As specialists in this field, we are able to access the organ donor register to ascertain your loved one’s end of life decision. We are able to answer all questions and queries that their relatives may have surrounding organ and tissue donation, and we carry out keepsakes like handprints and locks of hair for them. 

We facilitate the whole process from start to finish, whilst supporting the patient’s family and the unit staff. 

Specialist nurses for organ donations also run teaching days for the staff on ICU, carry out audits, hold quarterly organ donation committee meetings, run debriefs for staff and continue to support our donor families.  

What inspired you to work in organ donation? 

I have always been very pro-organ and tissue donation, I signed onto the organ donor register when I started driving, many moons ago, and believe that it’s the most incredible gift that someone can give to another. 

When I started working in ICU 10 years ago, I was horrified to learn that there simply aren’t enough organs for the many people waiting on the transplant list.  I knew from that moment that I wanted to be part of the team that was doing everything they could to change this, and to allow more people to live via the gift of organ donation.   

How would you explain organ donation and the all the processes that need to be followed before an organ donation can go ahead? 

I would honestly need hours and hours to explain all the processes that occur prior to an organ retrieval! But suffice to say the onus is on the safety of the organ, we have extremely rigid policies in place that need to be adhered to, to ensure that all organs are completely safe to be transplanted.  

Can you tell us about the first time you had to discuss organ donation with a patient’s family – and has anything changed since that first encounter? 

I do remember the first time I spoke with a family about organ donation; I was terrified!  But they were distraught and so I asked them to tell me a bit about their loved one. This changed them, their faces lit up and they told me about the type of chap he was, how caring he was and that he’d do anything for anyone.  Before I knew it, I found myself surrounded by wonderful stories from a family reminiscing about the good times, it was so heart-warming.  When I spoke about the possibility that he could save the lives of others though the gift of organ donation, they immediately said that he’d have loved that. 

Since then, the law surrounding organ donation has changed. Max and Keira’s Law (Read about Keira and Max's story and Law here) was passed in government and came into effect in May 2020, it’s been a long time coming.  

Thanks to the law it is presumed that if you have not ‘opted-out’ on the organ donor register, you have no objection to organ donation.  We will always talk to all families to establish their loved ones last known wish, and we are required to complete a consent form and additional information with the next of kin. 

What would you say to those not sure about donating? 

We can give you as much information as you need to enable you to make an informed decision about organ donation, please just allow us the opportunity to help you explore that with you. 

Knowing your loved one has saved a life or lives through the gift of organ donation can bring so much comfort at a time of deep despair and grief. 

We will support you throughout the process and we will be with your loved one throughout their journey to become an organ donor. 

To our knowledge, no donor family has regretted donating their loved one's organs, but some have come back to us and told us that they regret saying no to organ donation… 

To find out more visit the NHS Organ Donation website